California Local News Fellowship - Newsrooms

The fellowship program is open to California-based newsrooms that produce original, local reporting in the public interest and are interested in hosting a full-time, early-career journalist for two years, starting in September 2026. We prioritize newsrooms operating in underserved communities, including for-profit, nonprofit, public media, and community and ethnic media outlets. 

Ideal newsrooms understand their communities’ information needs and can explain how hosting a fellow would help meet that goal. Participating newsrooms must also show a commitment to journalistic ethics, diversity and inclusion. 

Yes. The program is open to all news outlets, with a particular focus on those serving underrepresented communities. Fellows receive extensive training, mentoring and editing support to strengthen their newsroom experience. That said, every fellow is early in their journalism career. It is important that every fellow has an experienced editor to report to in their newsroom. Ideally, they will work alongside other reporters, whether full-time, part-time or freelance, to build professional relationships.

While the program prioritizes outlets in underserved communities, larger mainstream newsrooms are welcome to apply. We encourage these outlets to place fellows to beats, neighborhoods or communities that expand their current coverage, including communities not currently covered.

Because we are focused on how each newsroom serves its local community, every newsroom must submit its own application, even if they are part of a larger parent organization.

No. Because the program is funded by California taxpayers and is designed to strengthen local news coverage in the state, the program is limited to news organizations based in California.

All fellows should produce journalism that helps audiences stay informed and engaged in their communities. Fellows may work as general assignment reporters or on a specific beat, producing daily stories, features, investigative and accountability reporting, or a mix of these styles. 

Fellows can work in any medium, including digital, print, video, audio, multimedia or photography. Newsrooms should outline a clear plan for the fellow’s role, how it furthers the newsroom’s mission, and how the newsroom will support the fellow editorially and professionally over the two-year program.

The newsroom application period runs from November 18 to December 15, 2025. Newsrooms will be selected in January 2026, followed by the fellow application opening in early 2026. Fellows will be selected by early spring and matched with newsrooms by late spring 2026. 

We will announce the 2026 cohort in the summer. Fellows will begin working in their newsrooms in early September 2026 and complete the program in August 2028.

While fellows are based in their host newsroom, they are full-time, exempt employees of the University of California. They are managed by their onsite newsroom manager, who should provide day-to-day support and editorial guidance and help integrate them into the newsroom and the communities where they are reporting. The fellows are represented by the UAW Local 5810; your newsroom will be expected to adhere to the union contract governing their positions. If accepted, we will provide your newsroom with more information about this.

The fellowship program will provide the fellows’ salaries and 100% of their benefits for two years, along with robust training, mentoring and editorial support.

Newsrooms are expected to contribute $25K per year if they have 20 or more FTEs;

$15K per year if they have 11-20 FTEs; and $5K per year if they have 1-10 FTEs.

Newsrooms are invoiced twice a year, in fall and spring, for their contribution to the program. Newsrooms also are expected to provide reporting equipment (laptops, audio or visual equipment, etc.) and to cover the fellows’ reporting expenses, including travel reimbursement (i.e. mileage), document fees, etc.

The program will offer training and mentoring throughout the two-year program. The fellows will attend an in-person orientation at Berkeley Journalism in early September 2026, prior to starting work in their newsrooms. After that, you should anticipate that fellows will spend one to two hours per week in fellowship-related activities. The vast majority of the programming will take place online but, as the program evolves, we may organize additional statewide or regional in-person gatherings. If so, we will provide newsrooms with plenty of advanced notice.

The intent of the funding for this program is to create new local news reporting positions throughout the state. For that reason, participating newsrooms will sign an MOU agreeing that fellows will not replace existing staff.

If there is a reporter in your community whom you would like to have in your newsroom — someone whose work you’ve admired or who has freelanced for your organization — please encourage them to apply for the fellowship program and apply as a preferred match. There will be space in the newsroom and fellowship applications to indicate that you’d like to work together. If both the fellow and the newsroom are accepted into the program, we will do our best to place you together.

Yes. Returning newsrooms are welcome to apply for a 2026 reporting fellow if their previous fellow will have completed the program by September 2026.

Returning newsrooms may also apply for an editing fellow, even if they are still hosting a reporting fellow in September 2026.

Editing fellowships are open to all California newsrooms, including those already hosting a reporting fellow. Read more about the editing fellowship, a partnership with the Maynard Institute for Journalism Education, here.  

In general, each newsroom hosts one reporting fellow. Occasionally, we may place a second fellow in a newsroom if circumstances change during their fellowship term. The pilot editing fellowship is open to all newsrooms, even those hosting a reporting fellow in 2026.